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Bread, old taste of the South
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| Italy possesses an ancient common heritage which appears in many different shapes and sizes - bread. Whereas in the North small shapes prepared with refined flour are common, as bread was only eaten on special occasions to substitute the daily polenta, in the South large loaves are more prevalent, usually made with coarse flours. This is a legacy of local traditions as bread has always been the everyday staple of the South. It was baked into large shapes to increase its keeping qualities, thus avoiding the necessity for fresh daily preparation. |
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DURUM WHEAT IS USED IN ABRUZZO |
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Our journey into the varied, wonderful world of the breads of southern Italy starts in Abruzzo, where in the mountain regions of the Maiella the highly regarded Pane Cappelli is prepared with the type of durum wheat flour of the same name which is the main ingredient of the dough. Its dark, yellowish dough is tasty and has good keeping qualities. Still in Abruzzo, in Vasto on the Adriatic coast, pane spiga is prepared using common wheat flour and has cuts on the top which represent a spike of wheat. Finally, parruozzo is quite unusual; it is a very soft bread made with corn and is typical of the province of Teramo, where it is traditionally eaten with boiled vegetables.
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THE BREAD OF ANCIENT ROME |
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One of the most ancient breads of the Italian peninsula can be found if we move across to the Tyrrhenian coast, and Campania in particular. Pane di Padula, from the province of Salerno, is prepared with a mixture of durum wheat and common wheat flours and is easily recognised by the small squares which decorate the top of the round loaves, a pattern which is very similar to the images of bread in some mosaics in Pompei. Pane cafone on the other hand is completely smooth, made of common wheat flour, and is the classic Neapolitan loaf widely available throughout the entire region.
Furthermore, the Campania region is noted for its typical flavoured breads, which constituted a frugal meal for peasants in years gone by. For instance, the tòrtano, a ring-shaped bread made from common wheat to which pork scratchings are added. Or the pane del pescatore, typical of the Sapri region, in the Cilento, which is made by kneading together durum wheat flour, water, yeast, pieces of salted anchovy and black olives.
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IN PUGLIA WITH FRISELLE AND ALTAMURA BREAD |
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Puglia excels in bread-making traditions, and is also renowned beyond its regional borders. So much so that pane di Altamura, the most well-known bread of Puglia, has obtained IGP status (Indicazione Geografica Protetta- Protected Geographical Indication) and is sold throughout most of Italy. Produced in the town of the same name in the province of Bari, this squat bread shaped like a large hat is made from durum wheat flour and is cooked in a wood-fired oven, a procedure which gives the crust a good dark colour and a Mediterranean flavour of olives and almonds. It is excellent for preparing bruschette flavoured with local extra-virgin olive oil.
Still in Puglia, but also in nearby Basilicata and Calabria, friselle are worth mentioning, a typical ring-shaped, biscuity bread prepared with white or barley flour with very long keeping qualities. Being of a very hard consistency, they must be soaked in water and vinegar before eating and then dressed with olive oil and tomatoes.
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THE FOOD OF RELIGIOUS FESTIVALS |
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Round, soft and of very ancient tradition, pane di Matera is the symbol of Basilicata. Horace was familiar with it: in fact the Latin poet mentions it in the Quinta satira, praising its fragrance which it owes to the finely ground durum wheat semolina flour dough and baking in a wood-fired oven. Today it is available throughout Italy, whereas you have to press on into the Matera region to try another of Basilicata's specialities, u felettd, a tasty ring-shaped loaf flavoured with lard and fennel seeds and cooked in a wood-fired oven, prepared for the feast of the Immaculate Conception on 8 December.
Also connected to a religious festival, the buccellato from Calabria is a ring-shaped loaf of common wheat flour which is slipped onto the arm during the procession of Corpus Domini in June. But Calabria also has many other types of unusual breads to offer: from the panedi castagne, whose dough combines boiled, puréed chestnuts and wheat flour, to frese, white or wholemeal, a biscuity bread similar to the friselle of Puglia and Basilicata, which farm workers soaked in wine and rubbed with tomato for an afternoon snack.
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There is a very rich tradition of bread-making in the Islands, and here too, it is based on rural tradition. In Sicily pane nero di Castelvetrano is found; dark and aromatic, it is baked using olive wood and is mentioned by Giovanni Verga as the humble food of the characters in his earthy novels. The pane a birra, which is widely available in the province of Messina owes its name to beer yeast, which together with natural yeast is the distinguishing ingredient of these plaited or baguette shaped loaves, sprinkled with sesame seeds. In the Sardinian tradition however, a special place is reserved for the pane carasau, of a unique shape and consistency: in fact it consists of wafer-thin crispy circular sheets, also known as 'carta da musica', or music sheets. Carasau is reheated in the oven and dressed with olive oil and salt, crumbled into soup or milk or soaked and rolled and filled with various ingredients. Also worth mentioning is the tunda, a star-shaped durum wheat bread with five or seven points which shepherds carried in their knapsacks as supplies when they left the village to look after their sheep.
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